Offers and rewards

Rate change facts

At TUH, we are committed to providing sustainable health cover which gives our members quality products and services. As a not-for-profit fund, we work in your best interests and want to help you understand why premium increases are necessary.

How is my increase calculated?

Each individual product has its own increase which takes into consideration the amount of people covered under that product and claiming activity. The premium increase reported by the media is the average percentage increase of all health covers across all health funds.

Therefore, depending on your cover, your premium may increase by more or less than the industry average.

The amount of premium you pay is also affected by the amount the government contributes towards your health fund premium.

For example, in 2013 the Australian Government Rebate on Private Health Insurance was 30%. This has decreased to 25.93% in 2017 which also impacts your premium.

There are two main drivers for premium increases.

Firstly, Australians are living longer. There will be over twice the number of people aged '85 and over' in the next 20 years. As they age, people are more likely to experience hip and knee replacement, heart disease, eye surgery and other serious conditions. We need to be prepared to meet the costs of keeping them healthy and well for as long as possible.

Secondly, improvements in medical technology and treatments have resulted in more lives being saved and quality of life being improved. But, medical advancement comes at a cost which is over twice as much as CPI (the Consumer Price Index) or wages growth.

The increase in health fund premiums is driven by the escalating costs of health services combined with a growing number of people claiming for these services.

For TUH to continue giving you the best value and services, changes to premiums are necessary. Because the health insurance industry is regulated, all premium changes are approved by the Minister for Health so you’re assured that any changes are fair and necessary.

TUH consistently returns a higher proportion of our income to members in the form of benefits than the industry average.

For example, last year we paid 17% more in claims than the year before. And we were more than happy to. After all, it’s why we’re here.

Having health insurance gives you peace of mind when unexpected health events occur.

Below highlights Some of the more costly individual hospital admissions by age group we paid last financial year.*

Please note that these costs do not include medical charges (i.e. doctor’s/specialist’s fees and some prostheses). *2015-2016 financial year.

Being with TUH is a great choice

We’re immensely proud to have high member retention and satisfaction rates.

While there may be other health funds that offer lower premiums, you may find these come with lower benefits and services. We don’t have “junk” policies - important services such as cardiac and cancer care are automatically included on all our hospital covers. We will continue to offer you the most competitive rates and value-added services to keep your hip pocket healthy too.